Ibukun Olabinjo, BS, AA

STUDENT and thinkSMART@home COACH

Ibukun graduated from UCLA in 2020 with a B.S. in Psychobiology and a minor in Applied Developmental Psychology. As an undergraduate, Ibukun was one of the Lead Research Assistants in Dr. Alissa Ellis’ thinkSMART® Lab. While working with Dr. Ellis, Ibukun presented research at multiple local and national conferences. In addition to her ongoing work with the thinkSMART® program, she is a research assistant for the UCLA Collaborative Family Study where she also conducted independent research on protective factors for youth with and without developmental disabilities.

Ibukun completed her post-baccalaureate work as a research assistant at the Children’s Institute, a non-profit mental agency that provides early education, behavioral health, and family-strengthening services for underserved populations in LA.

She is currently a Ph.D. Student in Clinical Psychology at UCLA, advised by Dr. Lauren Ng. Her research focuses on identifying and improving protective factors for vulnerable populations. In particular, Ibukun hopes to specialize in intervention research that targets and builds positive psychological constructs like hope and resilience with the goal of helping trauma-exposed youth with high risk for adverse psychosocial outcomes to feel better equipped to navigate adversity and create pathways toward their goals.